€24 million R&D investment by Wyeth Biotech

The Irish Development Team has already delivered excellent scientific and process improvements for Wyeth and this investment today is a further vote of confidence in the Grange Castle Campus. In addition to the 10 new Development Scientists, Wyeth will be recruiting a further 70 staff this year bringing its direct employment at Grange Castle to 1350.

Michael Kamarck, Senior Vice President, Wyeth Biotech

25/04/2007

Wyeth Corporation
Company establishing new process development and pilot R&D laboratory facilities at its Grange Castle Campus in Dublin

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Micheál Martin T.D. today (Wednesday 25th April 2007) announced that Wyeth Corporation, one of the largest research based pharmaceutical and healthcare companies in the world, is investing a further €24 million in the creation of additional dedicated R&D and process development facilities at its Grange Castle Biopharmaceutical Campus in Clondalkin, Dublin.

Supported by IDA Ireland, the investment will add 6,000 square metres of laboratory space in addition to the 2,500 square metres already in operation. The R&D facilities currently employs 70 people, with a high percentage of the staff having PhD and other advanced degrees. This number will increase to 80 during 2007.

The new facilities improve the linkage between R&D and manufacturing at the Grange Castle site. Grange Castle currently has the capability to take early stage products from Wyeth’s Research and Development and bring them to laboratory scale. This new laboratory capacity will give it the competitive edge in areas of process development. The Intellectual Property resulting from the research will place the Irish operation in a highly strategic position.
Minister Martin said “This is further excellent news for the Grange Castle Campus. It will give its development group a considerable increase in its capacity and will represent a key biologics development capability in Wyeth worldwide. The location of this strategic R&D investment in Ireland is a testament to the success of the initial R&D mandate at Grange Castle, the commitment of the management and existing workforce at the facility, and the continuous availability of the highest calibre of qualified people in Ireland.”
Michael Kamarck, Senior Vice President, Wyeth Biotech thanked the Minister for the continued support, which Wyeth has received in Ireland. “The Irish Development Team has already delivered excellent scientific and process improvements for Wyeth and this investment today is a further vote of confidence in the Grange Castle Campus. In addition to the 10 new Development Scientists, Wyeth will be recruiting a further 70 staff this year bringing its direct employment at Grange Castle to 1350”.
The Grange Castle Campus is a biopharmaceutical development and manufacturing facility of 100,000 sq.m. The facility, a €1.8 billion investment, is one of the largest biopharmaceutical plants in the world. It commenced production in 2005 and currently employs 1,270 people, which will rise to 1,350 later this year. Its operations include drug fermentation, sterile fill/finish and product and process development.

About Wyeth
Wyeth is a multinational pharmaceutical company and the 10th largest pharmaceutical company in the world. Wyeth produces pharmaceuticals, consumer healthcare products, vaccines and nutritional products. It employs 50,000 people worldwide and had sales of $20.4 billion and net earnings of $4.2 billion in 2006. R&D expenditure for the year was $3.1 billion.

Wyeth in Ireland
Wyeth Corporation has five existing facilities in Ireland employing a total of over 3,000 people. In addition to Wyeth Biotech at Grange Castle in Dublin, it has -
Wyeth Medica Ireland in Newbridge - Established 1992, it employs 1,300 people in the manufacture of ethical pharmaceuticals and it is one of the largest solid dosage plants in Europe.
Fort Dodge Laboratories in Sligo – Established in 1990, it employs 100 people in the manufacture of small and large animal vaccines.

Wyeth Nutritionals Ireland in Co. Limerick - Established in 1974, it employs 550 people in the manufacture of infant nutritional products.
Wyeth Pharmaceuticals in Ballymount Dublin – Sales and Marketing operation employing over 70 people.

For further information –
Wyeth – Peter O’Brien, Communications Director, Tel: 087 8114637

Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment - Press Office, Tel: 01- 6312200

Jerry O’Connor, Press Advisor, Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, 087 6630338/016312200

IDA Ireland - Ruth Croke, Press & PR Manager. Tel: 087 4195051